The north entry of the proposed new library building can be seen from street level in this rendering from Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture.

Voters again shot down a ballot measure that would have raised property taxes in Windsor to pay for the building of a new library, but the library district said it still needs more square-footage to meet the needs of its patrons.

This year's Ballot Issue 6C would have cost residents of the district $5.43 a month on a $350,000 residential property, according to the district, and the money would have gone toward a $23 million library at Greenspire Drive and East Main Street in Windsor. It would have replaced the current building at 720 3rd St.

The library district has already spent $925,000 to buy the site proposed for a new library.

What's next

The Clearview Library District Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 29 at the library, 720 Main St., Windsor. The board members plan to schedule a public feedback session on the ballot measure that failed last year and this year, which would have raised property taxes in the district to build a new library. To send feedback to the district any time, email connect@clearviewlibrary.org.

Joann Perko, president of the Clearview Library District Board, said although board members are disappointed with the outcome, they will meet to develop a plan to address the issues the library faces, which will likely include a variety of public meetings.

The main issue, Perko said, is a lack of space. The district can’t expand its programming, she said, even though the community continues to grow. The current building is too small, she said, in part because it was built when Windsor had fewer than 10,000 residents, and the addition — all the district said it can do at the site — wasn’t enough to meet capacity needs.

Joann Perko, the president of the Clearview Library District board, checks her phone and a library computer for updates as results of the 2017 fall election came in. (Tribune file photo)

Kendra Adams, a member of the committee against the 6C tax, said she’d be happy to be part of those meetings, and to do what she can to be part of the solution. The tax, she said, wasn’t the answer the district residents wanted, so she hopes the board members will be open to what the community wants, whatever that may be.

Although district residents have shot down the tax for a new building, Perko said that doesn’t indicate any lack of need for libraries. They are not fading, she said, just changing to reflect the needs of the communities in which they reside.

“It’s a gathering place where everyone can come, where they are welcomed and given the things they need,” she said. “If we don’t have it here, we’ll find what they need.”

Although some have argued libraries will one day become obsolete, Perko said library patrons and employees would disagree.